Bywill and Edion Launch J-Credit Creation and Sales Scheme Through Residential High-Efficiency Heat Pump Installations

Bywill Inc. (Head office: Chuo-ku, Tokyo; President and Representative Director: Yuichiro Shimomura), which promotes economic circulation by utilizing environmental value with the aim of creating a world where people want to engage in GX, has partnered with Edion Corporation (Head office: Osaka City, Osaka; Chairman, Executive Officer and CEO: Masataka Kubo), operator of a consumer electronics retail chain, to launch a scheme for creating and selling J-Credits through the installation of high-efficiency heat pumps, such as EcoCute systems, in private homes and other locations. The companies have established a framework that enables customers who install eligible equipment at Edion stores to easily participate in Bywill’s J-Credit creation project, “Hipo Lab.” Through this initiative, Bywill will convert previously overlooked environmental value into J-Credits, contributing to a decarbonized society while further advancing Edion’s sustainability activities. Under the partnership scheme, Edion will serve as the customer contact point at its stores for recruiting members and processing enrollment in “Hipo Lab,” Bywill’s J-Credit creation project, for customers who purchase and install household high-efficiency electric heat pump equipment such as EcoCute systems. Bywill will aggregate the small amounts of CO2 reductions generated by individual equipment installations as part of the “Hipo Lab” project and support the process from J-Credit registration application and certification through to sale in the market. The background to the partnership is the growing corporate need for carbon offsetting as Japan works toward carbon neutrality, while domestic J-Credit supply remains extremely limited compared with demand. At the same time, the environmental value embedded in “Climate Assets,” such as renewable energy and energy-saving equipment installed in private homes, has often been overlooked due to a lack of opportunities for effective utilization. As a Climate Asset Developer, Bywill will help utilize the environmental value embedded in the climate assets held by Edion customers by converting it into J-Credits. Bywill will support complex documentation, application procedures and payment of review costs. Through a fully success-based compensation model that distributes the sales proceeds from the generated J-Credits, the scheme monetizes environmental value while minimizing the burden on Edion and its customers. In addition, under Japan’s government-run “Hot Water Energy Saving 2026 Project,” expressing intent to participate in the J-Credit system is a mandatory requirement for subsidy applications. Enrollment in “Hipo Lab” will help customers smoothly meet the requirements for receiving subsidies. Customers will not incur any membership fees or other financial burden when participating in this project. The project is named “Hipo Lab,” and the eligible equipment is high-efficiency heat pumps, including EcoCute systems. The project converts CO2 reductions achieved by replacing fossil fuel boilers and similar equipment with high-efficiency electric heat pumps into credits. Bywill states that achieving carbon neutrality requires decarbonization activities across all of Japan, including households and small and medium-sized enterprises, not only large corporations. It is also necessary to increase climate assets that contain environmental value contributing to climate change mitigation and adaptation. By converting environmental value into economic value, Bywill aims to make holding climate assets more rational and contribute to carbon neutrality and a sustainable society. Through this partnership, Bywill aims to make the circulation between environmental value and economic value more commonplace, expand investment in climate assets, and help realize carbon neutrality and a sustainable society as soon as possible.